


Love and Other Happy Things

by Talvenhenki



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Accidents, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Babies, Death, Domestic Fluff, Don't worry he'll be better in later chapters, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Hospitals, Just generally very fluffy but there is a little bit of angst, Lancelot (Merlin) Lives, Major character death in chapter 3, Other, Polyamory, they have a baby!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-23
Updated: 2019-10-29
Packaged: 2020-10-26 22:36:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,402
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20749889
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Talvenhenki/pseuds/Talvenhenki
Summary: Mostly fluffy one-shots with Gwen/Lance/Arthur pairing as it is a pairing I love a lot and want to write more for. The stories will be unrelated to each other unless stated otherwise. Will tag warnings and mention them on the chapter notes/summaries





	1. In which they are very much in love (with Lancelot's cooking)

**Author's Note:**

> This chapter is an unspecified modern au where they are adults and living together.
> 
> I hope you enjoy & please comment to tell me what you think and maybe tell me possible ideas for later chapters!

Lancelot was humming in the kitchen when Gwen got home. It had been a long day at the school and Gwen had been fully prepared to try and make some sorry excuse of a dinner with Arthur’s help, seeing as Lancelot had lost his father few weeks before and was still somewhat depressed over it. Gwen had even bought a new box of cocoa powder to make some hot chocolate for Lancelot later to cheer him up a bit.

So, when Gwen heard the melody and smelled Lancelot’s wonderful risotto, tears almost sprung to her eyes. For the previous few weeks Lancelot had only been a shadow of his usual bubbly self, and Gwen and Arthur had been so terribly worried for him. His tendency to not open up to anyone about his feelings had made even Merlin, Gwen’s best friend since childhood, worry.

Stepping into the kitchen, Gwen first saw Arthur sitting at the dinner table, clearly annoyed about having been demoted back to his useless self who really couldn’t cook. Lancelot was standing near the stove, tending at his risotto and humming to the tune of Elton John’s _Your Song_ which he was listening to through his comically large headphones. He was wearing a sweater Gwen had never seen before and swayed to the music Gwen couldn’t hear.

“He’s not letting me help at all!” Arthur complained when he noticed Gwen’s conflicted expression. “He just told me to ‘wait and let him be useful for once’. Now I’m the one being useless!”

Gwen couldn’t help but giggle; she hadn’t heard that tone from Arthur for almost as long as Lancelot had been mourning his father. Without realising it, they had let their home lose its warmth and comfort as they’d wait for Lancelot to start feeling more like himself. It was only then Gwen realised that they should actively have helped Lancelot, should have shown him love instead of letting him suffer all alone.

Gwen placed her grocery bag on Arthur’s lap and hugged Lancelot from behind. She could feel Lancelot relaxing into her touch and lean on her a little. He rubbed his cheek on top of her head, making his beard scratch her a little.

“Hello there, pumpkin”, Lancelot whispered, “how was your day?”

“It was long and I’m happy to be home”, Gwen said, squeezing Lancelot’s torso a little, “and I’m even happier to see you up and about. How are you feeling, puppy?”

“I’m good”, Lancelot whispered, “I feel better than in weeks. I’m cooking something good for all of us. Can you and kitten set out the table?”

“Yes”, Gwen breathed, “yes, we can.”

Gwen and Arthur quietly set out the dishes and took out a bottle of wine to drink with the magical dinner Lancelot had conjured up. They were already seated at the table when Lancelot finished the dish and brought the steaming risotto over to the dinner table. Arthur had made a little salad to go with it and had already distributed it evenly on the three plates. Lancelot neatly put some risotto on all the plates and placed the serving bowl on the table before sitting down and allowing Gwen to pour the wine.

The risotto was simply heavenly. Gwen said as much, and so did Arthur, making Lancelot blush furiously. That made them compliment the food even more, just to see Lancelot turn into the awkward man who couldn’t react to compliments to save his life and who stuttered to say that no, he was not in fact so good at cooking as they insisted.

Later in the evening, when the dinner table had been cleared and the dishes washed, the three were cuddling on the sofa with the TV on for some white background noise. Arthur was half-sitting in the middle while Lancelot lay half on top of Arthur, leaning his head on Arthur’s right shoulder while Gwen lay at Arthur’s left side in a similar manner. Arthur was holding both of his loves, and his right had was buried in Lancelot’s unruly curls, massaging his scalp, while Gwen was using her right hand to stroke Lancelot’s cheek.

“I’m sorry for not being very present lately”, Lancelot said. His face had acquired the melancholy look Gwen had got to know all too well lately. “I…my father’s death was so sudden, and I had had no time to get used to the idea of living without him. I didn’t know how to ask for help to deal with the whole situation. I’m so sorry for withdrawing from you two.”

“It’s alright”, Arthur whispered and kissed Lancelot’s forehead. “I’m happy you’re here with us now. I’ve missed the evenings like this very much.”

Lancelot smiled and rubbed his forehead against Arthur’s neck. Arthur giggled – his neck was very sensitive – and leaned his head on Lancelot’s. Arthur was clearly still worried about Lancelot; he’d told Gwen he’d hear Lancelot crying alone one night. Arthur had wanted to barge into the spare bedroom Lancelot had been inhabiting for the previous few weeks and comfort Lancelot but found that he couldn’t because Lancelot absolutely hated to be seen weak. Instead he’d stood quietly at the door, listening to the sounds of Lancelot’s distress and wishing he’d be strong enough to comfort his love.

“Could I spend the night with you two?” Lancelot asked quietly. There was a little hopeful glint in his eyes as he looked up at Gwen and Arthur. “I think I’d sleep better with you two. I’ve felt rather lonely these past few weeks.”

“Yes”, Arthur breathed before Gwen could even react, “we’d love to have you back with us. We – I’ve – been missing you so much that it’s almost unbearable. Could we move your stuff back to our room as well?”

“I think we could”, Lancelot said and smiled. “I think it’s time for me to come back to you.”

Gwen smiled and moved herself a little bit closer to Lancelot. She was stroking his beard – he had let it grow out a little more than usual – making him smile as well. She would never understand how someone’s eyes could be as full of love as Lancelot’s were when he looked at her or Arthur.

When they went to sleep, Lancelot was safely tucked in the middle, sandwiched safely between his loves who were hugging him as tightly as they could without strangling him. Even when he fell asleep, he was smiling, happy to be safely with his two favourite people in the whole world.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments warm my soul!!


	2. In which there are a lot of hugs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arthur isn't happy - Lancelot decides to change that

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pretty much just cuddling in here
> 
> Also Merlin pretty much is just being a cryptid

Lancelot noticed it sometime around the second training match. Arthur was horribly stiff and there were bags under his eyes. He was moving mechanically and was definitely frowning more than usual; there was no trace of that Arthur-like smile – which Merlin thought was annoyingly smug. And, worst of all, Arthur had let through an attack he could easily have parried and got hurt in the process. It had not been Lancelot’s attack, thank heavens, but Percival’s, who was apologising profusely.

Something was wrong with Arthur, and Lancelot was going to find out what it was.

It was hard to get a moment alone with Arthur. Lancelot was, after all, just a knight and, no matter how close he was to the king and queen in private, he couldn’t just march up to Arthur and demand a moment with him.

Lancelot had to be sneaky.

With Merlin’s help, Lancelot managed to gather some fruit and meat to bring up to Arthur and Gwen’s chamber. When the night fell, Merlin led him up through the servant’s door to the chamber. Lancelot had warned Gwen of his visit and she’d made sure Arthur would be retiring to his chambers early. Lancelot hoped he wouldn’t be angry at the way he’d decided to handle things.

When they reached the royal bedroom – dubbed so by Merlin – they saw Arthur halfway lying on the bed while Gwen sat at the table. Even the air of the room felt sour as Lancelot stepped over the threshold. It was as if the royal couple was ignoring each other.

“What’s happened?” Lancelot asked softly. He hated seeing his loves so angry, deliberately ignoring each other.

Arthur looked up to see Lancelot and it looked like he was ready to throw an insult at him, but he kept his mouth shut. He sighed and looked at Gwen before rolling onto his side, to look outside of the window instead.

“We had a fight”, Arthur mumbled. He curled up in a foetal position and hugged himself, making himself a sorry sight. Lancelot had never seen him act quite like that. He sighed and sat next to Arthur on the bed after placing the food he’d brought at the table.

“Scoot over, Arthur”, Lancelot said, “we’re fixing this now. I hate seeing you two this miserable.”

Arthur moved a bit, giving some room for Lancelot to lie down. Lancelot held out his hand to Gwen who got up and walked over to the bed where she was pulled down by Lancelot. He hugged her against his chest and grabbed Arthur’s hand.

“So”, Lancelot said, “what happened? I noticed earlier that Arthur wasn’t feeling alright, but I couldn’t talk to either of you much before now. What’s going on?”

“It was my fault”, Arthur mumbled. His back was still facing Lancelot and Gwen and he was trembling – was he cold? “I’m a good-for-nothing king; I can’t even keep myself together, let alone an entire kingdom! And now I’ve taken it out on you two and made everyone I care about miserable.”

_Ah_, Lancelot thought, _there it is_. Arthur had only recently been crowned king after Uther’s death and he was still very uncertain about most of the things he should be doing as a king. Lancelot cursed Uther to the deepest pits of hell for leaving his son like that, uncertain and unprepared. Lancelot had seen the horrible way Uther had treated Arthur and hated him for it; no child should be hurt by his parents like Arthur had been hurt by Uther.

“You’re not good for nothing, Arthur”, Gwen said. She was stroking Arthur’s arm, trying to comfort him in her own way. “You can be the king in your own way. I believe you’ll be a lot better king than Uther ever was; you’re so much kinder than him.”

“Really?” Arthur asked, looking over his shoulder. He looked so tired and uncertain that Lancelot’s heart broke a little. Had Uther Pendragon even understood what he’d done to his son, hurting and dismissing him like that?

Lancelot manoeuvred himself over Arthur and pushed him closer to Gwen, thus making Arthur lie in the middle of their little hug. Arthur yelped a little as Gwen hugged him from behind while Lancelot hugged them both. Lancelot started planting little kisses all over Arthur’s face, making him protest weakly, but eventually allowing Lancelot to kiss him, and even returning some of the kisses.

“I’ve been wondering”, Arthur mumbled while Lancelot was still kissing him, “could I do something to make amends for what my father did? Could I – could I make Camelot safer and more accepting?”

Lancelot held his breath. Was Arthur talking about magic? Could he, after all those years, find out who Merlin actually was? What could Lancelot say to sway Arthur’s opinion to the right direction?

“Of course you can”, Gwen said, “just ask the people what they want their future to look like. That’s what I’d do if I were the king. Everyone has an opinion and I think they’d feel more content about you as their king if you asked them what they think. Right, Lancelot?”

“Yes”, Lancelot breathed, “that’s the best way anyone could think of.”

Gwen grinned at Lancelot and reached up to mess up Lancelot’s unruly hair. It was for the best, in Lancelot’s opinion, that the idea had been Gwen’s and not Lancelot’s, as she didn’t know about Merlin’s magic. Lancelot hated keeping secrets from his loves but even more he hated the idea of Merlin being executed for the magic he hadn’t wanted to have.

Life truly could be unfair sometimes.

“That sounds good”, Arthur mumbled, his voice muffled as he’d buried his face on Lancelot’s shirt against his chest. “I’ll start doing that tomorrow. We’ll make Camelot a better place for everyone. Us three are going to manage that.”

Lancelot and Gwen smiled, having noticed that Arthur was falling asleep between them. He looked so very peaceful, having drained whatever it had been that had haunted him for the whole day.

Their future truly looked brighter than it had looked during Uther’s time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments fuel my soul!


	3. In which the Unthinkable Happens

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> At the edge of a loved one's bed, knowing that there is nothing more to be done

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a sad one. I don't even know what gave me the idea.
> 
> Warnings: Major character death

“I am sorry, there is nothing more we can do. The internal damage is simply impossible to repair. We can only ease his passing.”

Arthur couldn’t breathe. Lancelot had been in a car crash, trying to make it in time to their dinner date where they’d have celebrated his birthday. He had just turned 27. He had just turned 27 and instead of celebrating it with Gwen and Arthur in their favourite restaurant, Lancelot was on the hospital bed, dying because the staff couldn’t help him. He was dying because Arthur had reserved the table too early, knowing that Lancelot’s work could take longer that it was supposed to; it always did on Fridays.

Arthur needed to sit down. He returned to Lancelot’s bedside and sat down on the uncomfortable chair, unable to fathom the situation. They were going to lose Lancelot.

“What did they say?” Lancelot asked. His voice was so weak that it made Arthur’s throat constrict painfully. He grabbed Lancelot’s hand and kissed his knuckles, not wanting to relay the news.

“…they can’t help me?” Lancelot whispered. Arthur’s eyes teared up and he shuffled closer to Lancelot to kiss his temple. The tears were leaking down as he straightened up, shaking and nodding his head, unsure of what to do any longer.

Gwen was holding Lancelot’s other hand with one of hers, and had her free hand tangled in Lancelot’s curls. She was kissing his forehead, trying to be as close to him as she could. To Arthur, it looked like she didn’t want to let go of him, much like Arthur wanted to keep him with them.

“They said they can only ease your passing”, Arthur said softly, bending down to kiss Lancelot’s forehead. “I don’t want to lose you. I love you so much.”

Lancelot made an affirming sound and squeezed Arthur’s hand. His hand was already so very weak that Arthur’s throat constricted painfully. Lancelot’s beautiful brown eyes were full of pain and yet somehow, they looked so loving as Lancelot looked at Arthur.

“We’ll stay here”, Arthur whispered thickly, “we’ll stay with you until…until –”

“Until the end”, Gwen cut in, seeing that Arthur couldn’t finish the sentence. She kissed Lancelot’s temple and squeezed his fingers, trying to offer what little comfort she could give him.

“Thank you”, Lancelot breathed. Despite always being so strong, Arthur also knew Lancelot feared dying before his loved ones, feared hurting them. Arthur knew that Lancelot feared being alone in a situation like this and it made him want to cry.

The seconds spent waiting for the inevitable turned into minutes that processed awfully slowly. Gwen kept singing lullabies while Arthur held Lancelot’s hand, quietly talking to him about all the happy memories they’d made together during the years. Lancelot smiled at them and sometimes added to Arthur’s little stories with his own memories.

“Do you still have the photo albums we made for each other?” Lancelot asked suddenly, “the ones where we wrote little messages?”

“Yes”, Gwen said, smiling at Lancelot and stroking his hair, “they’re on the bookshelf you built.”

“Good”, Lancelot whispered, “that’s good. There are photos of all three of us. That way you can still see me even when I’m gone. You won’t have to miss me.”

“But we will”, Arthur said, kissing Lancelot’s knuckles again, “we will miss your voice and the way you hug us. We’ll miss the way you exist in our spaces. I don’t know how I’m going to live without you.”

“You have to”, Lancelot whispered, looking sadly at Arthur, “I want you to live on. I want you to be happy – I know it’ll be hard at first, but I want you two to be happy. I love you and I wanted to be the one to make you two happy but since it won’t happen, I want you two to be happy without me. If I am to leave this world, I want to leave it knowing that I made someone happy.”

“You’ve already made us happy”, Gwen said and kissed Lancelot. “We’ll make it through this, even if it takes kicking Arthur around a bit. I’m never going to forget how happy you two have made me. I’ll never forget you and what we had with you. Never in my life.”

Gwen stroked Lancelot’s cheek and Lancelot smiled weakly at her. Arthur took advantage of the little moment to absorb it all, to remember all of it. He wanted to remember Lancelot’s smile and the way the corners of his eyes crinkled when he smiled widely. He wanted to remember the shape of his face and the exact colour of his eyes, that beautiful brown that could swallow Arthur’s soul whole. He wanted to remember the unsure way they’d loved each other at first, the way they’d slowly learnt to let their guard down around each other.

“I love you”, Arthur whispered and bent down to kiss Lancelot’s temple. Lancelot sighed and turned his head to kiss Arthur on the lips. When they broke the kiss, he was smiling softly at Arthur.

“Could you sing that lullaby you always sing together?” Lancelot asked, his voice barely a whisper. “That one you learnt from Gwen’s mother. I love hearing you two sing it.”

“Of course”, Arthur said and began humming the song with Gwen. It was a duet, perfect for couples. Lancelot had always loved to listen to Arthur and Gwen singing it; he always said they gave the song more feeling than anyone else could.

Lancelot’s breaths grew harsher as the song processed. He was smiling weakly and holding both Arthur and Gwen’s hands loosely. Arthur found that once he’d started singing, he couldn’t stop, not even when Lancelot’s eyes couldn’t stay open and his breathing grew weaker and weaker.

Even when there was no more strength in Lancelot’s hand, Arthur kept singing through his tears.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments still feed my soul!


	4. Snapshots of a Life With a Daughter pt. 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There is a daughter. Cuteness ensues

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise there will be a part two but the moment felt so good for ending the first chapter and publishing the story :^)

The first thing Lancelot noticed waking up was that he was sore all over. The next thing he realised was that he was in a hospital bed. At first, he wasn’t sure why he was in a hospital bed, until the memory of the car crash hit him. He had been hurrying to the hospital – Gwen had gone into labour! – and his car had been hit because he hadn’t been paying attention.

The third thing Lancelot noticed was Arthur sitting at his bedside, trying not to laugh at the face Lancelot had been making.

“Congratulations”, Arthur said, “you managed to miss the birth of your daughter.”

“My…?” Lancelot asked weakly. He felt very unsteady all of a sudden and had to close his eyes for a bit.

“Well, we don’t know for sure”, Arthur said, smiling widely, “since she’s just half an hour old. But she’s our kid and we’re going to make her the happiest little girl in the world. Gwen is already doing it.”

A smile spread out on Lancelot’s face. He still felt rather light-headed and woozy, but it didn’t stop the joy filling his chest. He had been waiting for the child to be born for months and to finally hear of her birth…Lancelot was beyond ecstatic. Ever since Gwen had told them she was expecting, Lancelot had been waiting to meet the little baby.

“I’ll go ask the nurses later if I can take her here to meet you”, Arthur said, “since you’re not allowed to get up yet. You got quite the concussion.”

“Now that you mention it, I am feeling very light-headed”, Lancelot said weakly. He smiled at Arthur and tried to grab his hand, only to realise that his arm wasn’t cooperating and instead managed to smack Arthur’s arm and awkwardly pat it, making Arthur laugh.

“God, I forgot how weird you become when you have a concussion”, he muttered and rubbed his face. “Remember that time you got hit at the football practice when we were still in school? You just kept blabbering about everything and nothing while Gwen and I thought you were dying. I think your mum still has photos of us three when we were waiting for you to get better.”

“I remember”, Lancelot said, smiling at Arthur, “I think you cried once. You kicked that ball at me, and I just went down.”

“I remember that”, Arthur said and laughed. He bent down to kiss Lancelot’s forehead. “I’ll go see Gwen now. Tomorrow they’ll let you out and then you can see our kid if I can’t sneak her out of the maternity ward today. Rest a bit before that.”

“I will”, Lancelot whispered, smiling as he closed his eyes.

* * *

It was on the following day that Lancelot was finally allowed to see the little baby. He was discharged from the hospital and the first thing he did was to go see Gwen and their little daughter while Arthur carried his stuff. (“There’s no way I’m letting you carry anything with those cracked ribs of yours!”) Gwen was beaming with happiness when she saw her boys walk into the room. She was holding a little bundle in her arms and smiling to it every chance she got.

“Wake up, little one”, she whispered to the bundle, “your papa has come to see you. He was in such a hurry yesterday that he crashed his car and couldn’t come to see you on your birthday.”

The bundle let out a little sigh and opened her eyes as Lancelot walked over to the bed. The baby let out a tiny yawn and smiled at Lancelot, instantly melting his heart. He reached out to stroke her cheek with his finger but instead she grabbed his finger and tried to chew it.

“She likes you”, Gwen said, smiling at Lancelot. He smiled back and kissed her quickly.

“I already love her”, Lancelot said, smiling fondly at the baby. “She is like a little miracle.”

“She is”, Arthur agreed, hooking his arm around Lancelot’s shoulder, “she is our little miracle. We should name her accordingly.”

“I was thinking that she should have one English name and one French name”, Gwen said and brushed the baby’s tiny nose. “That way she’ll have something from all of us; my surname and its Celtic roots, one first name in English from Arthur and me, and one first name in French from Lancelot.”

“That sounds amazing”, Arthur said, pulling Lancelot a bit closer to himself. “What do you think, Lancelot?”

“Angélique”, Lancelot whispered, never once tearing his gaze away from the baby, “her name should be Angélique.”

“That’s a good name”, Gwen said and squeezed Lancelot’s fingers. “Arthur? Do you have any names that could fit her?”

“I think Robin or Willow would be good names”, Arthur said. He was running his fingers through Gwen’s hair and holding Lancelot as close as he could.

“Willow sounds good”, Gwen agreed.

“Willow Angélique”, Lancelot said, trying out the name. “Welcome to the family, Willow Angélique.”

Willow smiled at Arthur and Lancelot and laughed.

* * *

“You were really quiet there at the hospital”, Arthur said. He and Lancelot were cuddling on the sofa, watching some police drama series that was on TV. Gwen still had to stay one more night at the hospital with Willow, so it was just Lancelot and Arthur home. “Are you feeling okay?”

“I had too much emotion”, Lancelot whispered, “I felt like it would burst in my chest. I love her so much already.”

“That’s perfectly normal”, Arthur said, smiling at Lancelot. He brushed Lancelot’s wild curls away from his eyes and leaned his head on top of Lancelot’s. “We’ll be a great family. I can’t think of anyone better than you and Gwen as parents for the kiddo.”

“Willow”, Lancelot whispered and smiled softly.

* * *

Willow was wearing a floral dress and she had a little bow on her head. It was her first birthday and her parents had decided to throw a small party for her. Lancelot had baked all kinds of cookies and other snacks with Gwen and Arthur – they were getting good at baking! – and even a tiny sugar-free cake for Willow who was still too young to actually eat much sugar. Only a few people were invited to the party so that there would not be too much noise around Willow who was still getting used to new people.

Willow was sitting on the sofa while Lancelot was kneeling on the floor, playing peek-a-boo with her, making her giggle. Every time Lancelot spooked her, she giggled more and fell sideways on the sofa and Lancelot had to help her sit back up.

“Aren’t you two cute”, Arthur said, looking fondly at the scene in front of him. Lancelot looked up at him and grinned. Arthur took advantage of the situation and took a photo of Lancelot and Willow.

Lancelot stood up and lifted Willow up as well, carrying her around on his hip. He began singing an old French hit song from his childhood and dancing around the living room. Willow laughed and tried to imitate the sounds of the French words, making Lancelot smile at her. Arthur was recording a video of the scene to show to Gwen and their friends later; she was on the phone with Elyan who couldn’t make it to Willow’s birthday party that year.

“Pa!” Willow cooed. Lancelot smiled and nodded at her.

“Oui!” Lancelot answered and kissed Willow’s little nose. “Papa. Dis-moi ‘papa’.”

“Pa”, Willow cooed again, “paaaaaaa pa! Papa!”

“Oui”, Lancelot breathed and kissed Willow’s temple. “Papa.”

At that moment – although he would never admit it – Arthur’s heart melted like butter. The little exchanges between Lancelot and Willow were so very precious to Arthur, even though he often missed the little nuances as he couldn’t speak French very well. Arthur loved the genuinely happy faces Lancelot made around Willow; there was something magical in the way Lancelot smiled when he saw someone he loved. He loved the sound of Lancelot’s voice when he spoke French to Willow – it was even softer than usual.

Arthur loved his family so much.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French key:  
Papa - diminutive of père (father)  
Oui - yes  
Dis-moi - say (2nd person singular imperative)
> 
> Comments warm my soul!!


	5. Snapshots of a Life Wth a Daughter pt. 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An evening after a long and tiring day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was gonna make this longer but I felt like this was long enough so you get only one scene
> 
> The lines in italics mean they're spoken in French

It had been a long day at work and after that, teaching the historical fencing classes. Lancelot’s shoulders were sore from swinging the broadsword during the sparring matches, but he was happy to be home. Arthur had made some pizza earlier on the day and Lancelot was eager to taste it – after Willow’s birth, Arthur had become better at cooking. The others had already had their dinner since they knew Lancelot would be late on Fridays – he’d been late every Friday since he found historical enactment martial arts and began practicing historical sword fighting during their university years.

“Welcome home”, Gwen said from where she was sitting on the sofa with Arthur and Willow, watching some Disney film together. Willow jumped down from Arthurs lap and ran over to Lancelot to hug his knees. She grinned at him as Lancelot patted her head.

“_Hey there, Angélique_”, Lancelot whispered in French, “_I’m a bit stinky from fencing so I’ll go take a shower and then I can hug you properly._”

Willow nodded and rushed back to the sofa to relay the news. Arthur smiled and walked over to Lancelot to kiss him. Lancelot tried to dodge the kiss, seeing how sweaty he was, but Arthur still managed to catch him in a hug and kiss him all over his face.

“Stop, Arthur”, Lancelot giggled, “I’m all sweaty! I stink! You don’t want to kiss me like this!”

“Yes, I do”, Arthur said and pulled Lancelot a little bit closer. “I love you, stinky or not.”

Lancelot managed to escape Arthur’s hold and pushed Arthur back towards the sofa. Arthur laughed at him and sent a kiss to Lancelot’s way. Lancelot made a face and retreated to the bathroom to wash himself. When he was done, he got a few pizza slices from the kitchen and went to the living room to sit next to his family. Gwen smiled at him and kissed his cheek as the ship took off in _Treasure Planet_ which was Willow’s favourite film at the moment.

When Lancelot was done with his pizza slices, he went to the kitchen to wash his dishes and to clean up the kitchen for the night. Although he was done rather quickly, he encountered a heart-warming sight as he returned to the living room: Arthur, Gwen, and Willow had all fallen asleep on the sofa. Arthur and Gwen were sitting next to each other and Willow was on their lap, clearly having been unable to decide whose lap she wanted to sit on.

Lancelot couldn’t help but smile as he fetched his camera and took a few photos of his precious family. He crouched down in front of the sofa, lovingly gazing at the three people he loved more than anything in the world. Being able to share his life with those three was a miracle for which Lancelot was forever grateful.

There was mist in Lancelot’s vision and as he tried to rub his eyes, he noticed that they were full of tears. Lancelot sniffled and wiped his eyes, determined to not show his family they’d made him cry. He loved them so much that sometimes the emotion was too much to him. He rested his forehead on his forearms for a moment before standing up.

Lancelot picked Willow up and carried her to her room to help her change into her pyjamas. After that was done, he helped her to brush her teeth, all while she was half asleep.

As Lancelot tucked Willow in, she whispered, “_I love you papa_.” For a moment, Lancelot froze completely. He had never before heard his little daughter say those words, as he had never been good at expressing vocally how much he loved her.

“_I love you too, my little angel_”, Lancelot whispered and kissed Willow’s forehead. She made a content noise, already fast asleep, making Lancelot smile at her.

As Lancelot left Willow’s room and closed the door, he almost crashed into Gwen who had been waiting behind the door. She looked worriedly at Lancelot and cupped his cheeks, brushing her thumbs over Lancelot’s wet cheeks.

“You’re crying”, she whispered. Lancelot closed his eyes and covered Gwen’s hands with his own, leaning slightly into her touch. “You don’t cry often.”

“I know”, Lancelot breathed and hugged Gwen. “She said she loves me, and it caught me off guard. I forgot how to keep my emotions in check.”

“What are you doing crying in the hallway like that?” Arthur asked behind Gwen, spooking both her and Lancelot, whose shoulders jolted up. “Did something happen?”

Arthur joined the hug, placing his hand on Lancelot’s back. Lancelot drew in a shaky breath and allowed Arthur to pull him closer. Arthur kissed Lancelot’s temple and rubbed his back as he knew Lancelot liked the touch.

“We should go to sleep”, Arthur mumbled against Lancelot’s temple and swayed a little. “We’re all tired. Let’s go to bed.”

Gwen and Lancelot agreed and followed Arthur to the bathroom to brush their teeth and get ready for bed. While Lancelot and Gwen were changing into their nightclothes, Arthur checked that there were no electronics left running in the other rooms and turned off all the lights except the night lamps in the bedroom.

“Your hair is messy”, Gwen said to Lancelot as they were sitting on the bed. She grabbed Lancelot’s hairbrush from the nightstand and shuffled closer to him. “Let me brush it.”

Lancelot nodded and Gwen got to work, untangling the wild curls. Arthur sat down next to him and hugged him, letting Lancelot rest his head on his shoulder. As Gwen progressed with brushing Lancelot’s hair, he felt more and more relaxed and eventually he dozed off leaning on Arthur’s shoulder.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments warm my soul!!


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